#the shortest engagement ever

[bobbie-robron]

Now, close your eyes and imagine us here in two years. (Part 1)

Robert takes Katie to a field, a field where Robert hopes to build a home for them. It is at this time he proposes to Katie and she enthusiastically says yes! Gifs will be posted separately (these two are just a tease).

08-May-2005

[ramavoite]

[foldingfittedsheets]

I’d like to entertain and enliven you now with the saga of my Slut Era.

I’ve always been a serial monogamist and my shortest long term relationships clocked in at three years. So perhaps that’s why when I finally broke it off with my ex I went insane on dating. Part of it was definitely just that between anxiety and loneliness I wanted to fill up my time.

This happened when I was living alone for the first time, no roommates, just me and my little cat Leeloo. I didn’t want to come home to an empty house so instead I set up dates.

Most of these were disastrous. I’m not everyone’s cup of tea and I had a lot more first dates than second because they’d seen enough, including the one where people aggressively complimented me.

But after a few months I had four people I was seeing simultaneously. I was up front with all of them that things were not exclusive, and they all agreed, so no infidelity took place here, just a lot of hijinks.

Here’s who was on the dating roster:

• An apprentice woodworker that we’ll call Jill. I honestly thought at 26 years old that her being 21 wasn’t a problem age gap and I quickly learned that there was a vast gulf of both maturity and life experience between us. Jill described herself as “heteroflexible” and had just dumped her first boyfriend to flirt it up with me.

• A married woman looking for a friends with benefits. We’ll call her Alice. I insisted on meeting her husband first to be sure I wasn’t part of a cheating mess and he gave me his blessing when I stayed over at her house. Years later when he and Alice had divorced I would go on to sell him and his new fiancée an engagement ring and we both realized at the end how we knew each other and it was wildly awkward. Alice was nice, but a hardcore vegan who insisted I brush my teeth if I so much as ate string cheese before I could kiss her. She was also unhappy in her marriage and was feeling out if I’d want to get serious.

• A bartender dubbed Snakebites, so called because of her signature piercings. She cooked me a steak so raw it was still mooing and some of the best asparagus I’d ever had. In our singular sexy encounter she bit my nipple and I never got over it. Really don't bite someone if you don't know their preference and work up in pressure. We weren’t terribly compatible but neither of us were willing to admit it yet. Truthfully I considered still dating her solely because I desperately wanted her bathroom. It had all black tile, black toilet, black sink, a rain shower in the corner and a jacuzzi tub. I may not have loved her but god I loved that bathroom.

And finally,

• My beloved, who I would go on to marry, who was dealing with a lot of personal stuff at the time. Obviously that meant I liked them the best of all the people I was seeing because we were both disasters at the time.

So that’s the cast of this little misadventure. Now, our story begins with Jill.

Jill was someone who heightened my anxiety. Each of the three times she came to my home she brought and left more stuff. A self help book, a ramen kit, the entire Teen Titans collection of DVDs. It was like she was trying to move in. She also liked to deride my taste in things, frequently calling me a pleb when I mentioned a band or show I liked.

She was working on a gorgeous little decorative table in her woodworking program. The main wood for the top had a beautiful dapple of knots like jaguar spots, and when she showed me a picture I exclaimed how pretty it was.

“Do you want it?”

“Oh- I mean it’s lovely, I wouldn’t mind having it, but you should sell it and make some money!”

But she was adamant. She’d give me the little side table. At about this time, Alice was starting to get awfully lovey for a FWB. I knew she wasn’t happy with her husband but I also knew we were not a good fit. Fun fact: Alice and her husband were step siblings with a pretty hefty age gap. They got together when he stumbled upon a kink photo shoot she’d done with vegetables. None of their family was happy about the relationship but they weren’t related by blood so it was fine.

So I was fending off more overt romantic advances from Alice, and feeling increasingly like I needed to break things off with Jill. Snakebites wasn’t ever initiating communication and I decided to pull a lot of plugs at once.

I ghosted Snakebites, told Alice that I thought we should cool it, and in a move worthy of a rom-com I asked my beloved if I could pretend we were exclusive to put off Jill. They agreed and I texted Jill to let her know that I was no longer single.

I was not prepared for Jill’s response. She. Was. Devastated. She flew off the handle. She’d just been waiting for the right time to tell me how she felt about me! How dare I do this to her!

What about the table?!

“You should keep the table, it’s gorgeous, you’ll be able to sell it, but I don’t expect a free table.”

Silence met me after that text. I worried and fretted and eventually headed home.

There on my doorstep. The table.

It was a small little end table, reeking of oil and polish, but very beautiful. I brought it inside. The little drawer didn’t even have a knob or guide rails. But it did have a handwritten bill proclaiming that it was costing me $500.

“I can’t afford a $500 table, Jill!” I texted.

“Well you kept saying how nice it was. I spent a lot of time on it.”

“I’m not saying it’s not worth $500” (it wasn’t, it was a tiny side table made by an apprentice) “but I can’t buy a $500 table.”

“Make me an offer.”

I stared at the little table. I did actually like it, but I worried about the repercussions of entering into this deal. Hesitantly I typed back, “$300.” I didn’t think it was worth that much but I didn’t want to insult her too badly.

This suited her for the night. But the next day she informed me she needed a new bed, and that she’d take her $300 in credit toward a new mattress. I spent the whole next day basically wrangling with her over what she wanted and eventually she spiked back up to demanding $500 for the damn table.

“Let me just give it back,” I begged. It was not the first, second, or even third time I’d asked to return the thing but this time she finally relented and gave me her address. Since she lived with her parents still I’d never been over.

I called up my beloved and said, “Hey, I need moral support, can you run an errand with me?”

They agreed which is how we loaded up a self help book, a ramen kit, the entire Teen Titans DVD collection, and the table from hell into my little car together. Jill had said to meet her at one o'clock. I intended to drop everything off at noon and be done with this madness.

But while my beloved and I were on the doorstep leaving everything I heard, “Jill? You’re home early,” through the door. Her mom opened it to peer at us in confusion.

“I was just bringing Jill’s stuff back!” I chirped in alarm.

With little tact and a lot of speed we left her with Jill’s collection of things and then I sped out of there like my tail was on fire. I handed my phone to my beloved as I zoomed away instructing them to block Jill’s number. I was free. The tabletross around my neck had been returned.

It was about a month after that when my beloved and I officially began dating exclusively. I had wrapped up all my messy dating threads and it was a relief to be in a relationship again. They went on a trip to Mexico shortly after we made it official.

So I knew they were out of town. But next morning I walked out to my car and beheld a lipstick kiss pressed to the drivers side window.

I was petrified. I had just dumped three girls at once and had an extremely messy back and forth with one of them. Did I have a stalker?!

Of the girls, Alice seemed like likeliest candidate, being of a stronger lipstick variety girl than Jill or Snakebites. We had ended things a bit stiffly, but still cordial. She just laughed when I asked if she knew anything about it. “Nope,” she said, “but good luck.”

I’d rather have walked over broken glass then text Jill, and I’d firmly ghosted Snakebites so I was scared to reopen communication to ask if she was stalking me. I had to drop it. But it haunted me, that lipstick kiss.

For months I was jumpy, wondering which of my spurned lovers had done it. And why. Was it a threat? A goodbye? I lay awake thinking about it, worrying about how everyone I’d dated knew where I lived, which car was mine.

Finally, nothing else happened and I moved on. The kiss would remain a mystery and I had to be content with that.

It was a year later when I finally started filling my mom in on my dating escapades that I finally got closure. She was hooting and laughing as I went over the table debacle. Then I paused and added, “And then this kiss showed up on my car.”

“Did you like it?”

“What? No! I’m pretty sure one of them was stalking me! Who else would leave a kiss on my car?”

My mom started bellowing with laughter. “I did!” She wheezed.

Apparently. My mother had been driving by my place. And decided that a cute little gesture would be to leave me a kiss. And then decided to never mention it to me even though she’s never done anything like that previously.

“It scared the crap out of me!” I yelled while she collapsed with helpless laughter. “I thought I had a stalker! How could I possibly have known that was you?!”

“How could I have known you’d just broken up with three girls at once?” She wheezed in rejoinder and like. Fair play.

So that’s how my mom convinced me I had a stalker and I got out of buying a $500 table.

[papercutsunset]

fucking nerd.

[frenchkisstheabyss]

♡ breathe your name ♡

♡ Pairing: best man!hyunjin x bride!chubby!fem!reader

♡ Genre: angst/fluff

♡ Summary: It's the day of your lavish wedding. Everything's set in place. From the dress you wear to the aisle you're walking down, everything's picture perfect. At least you're able to pretend it is until the appearance of a particular wedding guest in your dressing room brings up feelings that you can't ignore. Will you be able to bury your past to get through this day or will you find yourself drawn back into the arms of thet man you swore you'd never speak to again?

♡ Word Count: 3.7k

♡ Warnings: mentions of an affair that you definitely had with Hyunjin. a lil make out session. mentions of sex. but other than that? none (shortest warnings list I've probably ever written. oh my gosh).

♡ A/N: This is what happens when you leave me alone with an Adele playlist. Anyway, I hope you have fun at your wedding. It's gonna be...interesting, babes xoxo

There’s something some girls spend their entire lives dreaming of. Wishing, even praying, for. 

The perfect wedding. 

And you have it. 

The picturesque church nestled in the heart of a gorgeous historical district. It costs more than some people’s mortgage to rent this place for a few hours. The simple act of laying eyes on it starts knocking numbers off of your bank account. The celebrity planner who's been on the cover of wedding magazines and worked tirelessly to make sure today’s an occasion people will talk about for years to come. The gorgeously crafted white dress, custom sewn and beaded for your special day. It accentuates every delicate contour of your figure perfectly. Like everything else here. So perfect. 

“Smile a little, babe. This is the happiest day of your life!” your makeup artist giggles, applying the finishing touches to your lipstick. 

Seated in front of a mirror in the church’s dressing room, you nervously toy with your diamond bracelet and force a faint smile. All you can manage under the circumstances. 

“It might be raining out there” she hums, her gaze drifting over to the gloomy sky looming beyond the stained glass windows, “But you, my dear, are pure sunshine.” 

She circles behind you, gentle hands resting on your bare shoulders. “So, what do you think?” she asks, fussing with a few flyaway hairs that managed to sneak their way out of your updo. 

You take a deep breath and summon all of your courage to face what you’ve been running from all day. Your own reflection. “It’s beautiful” you lie, your smile beginning to waver as your stomach audibly turns. 

She shouldn’t be here. No one should. Not your family. Not your friends. Certainly not you. This is not the best day of your life. This is a mistake. You’ve known that for a while now and have been biding your time ever since waiting for the right moment to fix it. But the moment never came and time, as it does, ran out. Your fiance’s proposal had been accepted out of spite. It didn’t matter at the time that you were giving yourself away to a cruel, narcissistic man whose greatest joy in life is that he can use his daddy’s money to buy who and what he wants. 

What mattered was that the man you truly loved, the one your heart pines for even now, had broken your heart and you needed to break his. A mission that the announcement of your engagement flawlessly accomplished but was it worth it? Was any of this worth it? Your heart sinks to your stomach as if weighed down by cement bricks, heavy with the knowledge that it wasn’t. 

Your makeup artist sees it on your face. The sorrow. The regret. A sudden tapping at the door diverts any attempt she might’ve made to question you. She turns to answer the door but there’s no need. A figure in black is already entering the room, filling the air with a cologne you once spent endless passionate nights inhaling. Without thinking you breathe it deep into your lungs, savoring it even as you despise the appearance of the man it emanates from. 

“You must be lost. The groom’s room is down the hall on the left” your makeup artist frowns, waving the man in the designer suit away. 

The corners of his lips quirk into something that’s not quite a smile but pleasant enough to be mistaken for one. “No, I’m not lost. I just need a second with her. I won’t be long” he insists, advancing towards you with a confidence you find both irritating and irresistible.

That was Hyunjin for you. So charming. So graceful. So handsome. So much of everything that you can hardly stomach him. You crave his touch on every inch of your body and want him to get lost all at the same time. 

You clear your throat, patting your makeup artist on the back of the hand, “It’s fine. If anyone asks, just let them know I need a moment please.”

Hesitantly she nods and makes her way out of the room, all the while keeping a skeptical eye on Hyunjin who takes her place behind you. He fusses with the same hairs, successfully finding an excuse to touch any part of you. 

Hyunjin sighs, head tilted to the side. He pokes his bottom lip out, releasing a huff of air that blows his long dark hair free of his line of vision. Now he can see you perfectly, unobstructed, and his eyes light up at you the way they always have. “You look like an angel” he smiles and it’s genuine this time, no matter how badly you wish it weren’t. His fingertips brush your ears and your body’s flush with heat in an instant. You always despised it, how little it takes for Hyunjin to get a reaction out of you. 

“What do you want?” you snap, your tone unforgiving. The way you look at him, it’s as if you hate him. Why? Hyunjin knows why. He can’t deny that he deserves it for what he’s done—for what he’s come here to do. His hands drift along the outline of your face. They skim your cheek too lightly to disturb your makeup but you feel his touch still.

“Leave” you demand, drawing in a sharp breath at the sensation, “I don’t want you here.” The power behind your request is not existent. Rather than come out threatening, laced with conviction, your words are nothing more than a whisper. If you had to rely on them to push him out of the door he wouldn’t move an inch. 

Hyunjin leans into your ears, his eyes not once leaving the mirror where they remain locked with yours in a gaze brimming with enough heat to burn down everything around you. “I’ll leave but only if that’s what you truly want” he whispers, gently placing a warm hand to the soft skin of your chest.

Your heart picks up a speed only he can make it race at. The feeling’s a comfort to him. It’s the knowledge that even after all that happened you still feel what he does. There’s a fondness there that can’t be buried, it’ll always find its way back to the surface, but there’s something else too. Something he’s been able to hide from until this moment. You’re broken. Over the past few months you’ve done everything to pretend that you weren’t but you are and the pain has your eyes swelling with tears even as you fight to hold them at bay. 

“Fuck you, Hyunjin!” you shout, bolting up from your chair just in time for a few tears to escape, “Since when have you ever cared what I truly want? It’s always been about you. All this will ever be about is you.” 

Your anger’s boiling, hot tears staining your cheeks as you pace the floor. Usually on her wedding day a bride sheds tears of joy for her husband at the altar yet here you are full on weeping in front of his best man. Speechless, Hyunjin reaches out to grab your arm but you pull away from him, backing yourself into the furthest corner of the room. 

“I don’t know why you’re here. I gave you everything and it wasn’t enough. What else do you want?”

Hyunjin watches you for a moment, letting your words flow through his veins like a poison of his own making. “I never said it wasn’t enough…”

“Oh, you never said it?” you scoff, “You’re right, you just said, ‘I can’t do this anymore’ and then acted like nothing ever happened.”

“I was trying to do the right thing.”

“If that was ‘the right thing’ then what do you call this?” 

You await an answer, hoping that for once he might have something worthwhile to say, but you’re met with silence. The same silence he’s offered you every day since he broke your heart. “

Typical” you mumble to yourself, returning to the vanity in a desperate search for tissues. Maybe if you grab them soon enough you can preserve some of what your makeup artist worked tirelessly to achieve. Drying your eyes you catch a glimpse of Hyunjin and for a fleeting moment he seems deflated, like he has something resembling feelings, but you made the mistake of believing that before and you can’t let yourself be fooled by it again. 

Hyunjin’s chest tightens, every breath beginning to feel like hard labor. There’s something he’s been holding inside too and it’s aching to come out, it won’t let him breathe until it does. “You’re right, all this was ever about was me, but I never thought you weren’t enough. I loved you, I love you, I was just afraid you still loved him.”

Tossing your tissues aside, you turn to face him, arms folded across your chest. “You were afraid I still loved him when I was in your bed everyday?”

“And you crawled back into his every night” he says, a hint of bitterness slipping out, “I knew you’d leave him for me but for how long? I thought that if I ended things…if I told you to be with him instead you’d be happier.”

You take a deep breath, doing a regal twirl for him in your wedding dress, “Do I look happier without you?”

Hyunjin feels a tear wet his cheek and it stuns him, he hadn’t felt it coming yet there it is. “Do I look happier without you?” he shoots back, closing the distance between the two of you. “I know I’m the one who told you to stay but I can’t…I can’t stand there and let you marry him. He doesn’t treat you like you deserve to be treated. He can’t love you the way that I love you.”

Pinned against the table, his body too solidly planted to move, there’s nowhere for you to run to escape the truth. He slips his arms around your waist, bringing you into his chest with little concern to the mascara threatening to stain his dress shirt. You let your head rest there and for a moment you can pretend that you’re somewhere else. Back at his apartment maybe, like all those times before, cuddled up against him on the couch talking about nothing as the hours melted away. You always felt so at peace there, so protected. 

“They’re almost ready for you, darling!” a voice rings out as the door swings back open. The two of you scatter in opposite directions, unable to face one of your bridesmaids as she hurries into the room. She stops dead in her tracks, unsure what she’s walked into but positive it’s nothing good. 

“Everything good in here?” she asks, digging for the truth where you wish she wouldn’t. 

“Everything’s fine” you swear, painting on that forced smile again, “He was just leaving. Isn’t that right, Hyunjin?” 

Hyunjin looks to you, unsure what to do. He can’t stay and fight for you, not in front of your bridesmaid, but what happens if he leaves? He has no choice but to see. “Yeah, I was just leaving, uh, good luck with everything.” 

Your head drops as he dips back out into the hallway, leaving you to pick up the pieces all on your own but you can’t be mad at him, not for that. This is as much of your mess to clean up as it is his, if not moreso. You wish you could go back in time and do things differently but you can’t change the past and you can’t change what’s coming. Outside of that door hundreds of people are waiting for you. Your fiance’s waiting for you. The time for wishing has passed. It’s too late. 

A city bus whips through the rain slicked streets, settling as it pulls up to the only bus stop for 15 minutes in either direction. Outside a small crowd of people forms a line, hidden under the cover of jackets or umbrellas. The weather mentioned a chance of light rain but it’s pouring hard enough to make an umbrella almost useless. The second the bus doors swing open they’re piling inside, rushing to pay their fare and escape the downpour. As they settle in their seats the bus driver readies himself to close the door and truck along to the next stop. 

“Wait!” you shout, bolting through the rain to catch him before he peels off. 

Luckily he stops, the sight of you likely being the highlight of his day. You’re standing in front of the bus stop in a wedding dress soaking wet with your heels in one hand and a small clutch in the other. You probably should’ve attempted to grab an umbrella, a jacket, something before you got here but when you’re darting out of a church on your wedding day you don’t particularly have time to raid the lost and found for survival supplies. 

Completely out of breath, you climb onto the bus, attempting to wedge your toes back into your slippery shoes. “I’m sorry for holding you up sir but where does this bus go?”

“What are you doing?” Hyunjin’s calls from somewhere in the distance. 

You peek off of the bus, spotting him not too far away. Your blood runs cold. If he knows where you are, who else does? There’s no time to find out. 

“Nevermind” you say to the bus driver, fishing your fare out of your purse. 

You pay for your ride and scurry to the back of the bus, flopping down into your seat. You’re in a panic, attempting to bring yourself down from the rush of anxiety that came from bolting the second your bridesmaid turned her head. It’s a difficult feat when all eyes are on you. You do your best to appear normal, play it off like any other day, but this isn’t any other day. Everyone can see that.

Their curiosity piques even more when Hyunjin hops on the bus, frantically paying before scanning the seats to find you. A sweet old lady points to the back and Hyunjin rushes towards you, heaving for air as he takes the seat beside you. The bus doors finally close, plodding down the street as the two of you sit at the back like two soggy Barbie dolls. 

Staring out of the window, you watch the world pass you by, finding an odd comfort in the growing space between you and that church. There’s something therapeutic about leaving that place and everyone in it behind. Well, almost everyone. You can’t bring yourself to look at Hyunjin but he’s looking at you. Only at you. He watches you without expectations. There’s no pressure to speak, not even to acknowledge him, he only cares that you’re here and that he’s with you. Placing a hand on your knee, he shifts his attention to his own window, zoning out as the cars whoosh past, splashing rain onto the windows. You sit like this for the rest of the ride, trapped in your own worlds and tethered to each other’s all at the same time.

Everyone else must be searching for you right now. It’s likely that at first no one thought much of it. Someone would’ve suggested that you hadn’t heard the cue or might have run to the bathroom at the last minute. They would’ve sent your bridesmaids to search for you and the groomsmen next. Before long everyone would be in a panic trying to find you. You wonder how long it must’ve taken for them to notice that Hyunjin was missing too. It’s possible that they haven’t even asked that question yet, in too much of a frenzy to find you to think of it but when they do… 

The bus comes to a sudden stop, bringing you back to earth where Hyunjin stands over you tugging at your hand. “Come on, this is our stop.” 

You ask no questions, allowing him to guide you off of the bus and out onto a street corner you slowly begin to recognize. The rain has let up to a light sprinkle, the fresh post rain air a welcome change to the stuffiness of the bus. Looking around you spot a familiar restaurant. It’s the same one you used to grab breakfast from before heading to Hyunjin’s in the morning. Across the street is the park he’d take you to for picnics where you’d sit listening to music while he sketched the landscape in his notebook. His place is only a couple of minutes from here, you could find it with your eyes closed, but you let him lead the way, flashing an awkward smile at strangers whose gazes linger on you along the way.

Hyunjin keeps his hand glued to yours the entire time, not letting it go even as you climb the stairs leading to his apartment. Circumstances aside, it feels nice to have your hand in his again. The sex between you was amazing, each time more memorable than the last, but that wasn’t what he missed the most when you were apart. It was warming your hand with his on a cold day or feeling your noses brush when you kissed. The tiny things people take for granted until they lose them. 

“Wait here” he says once you’re inside, disappearing down the hall and abandoning you to the silence of the living room. 

The place is exactly as you remembered it. The black tufted couch with the fluffy purple star plushie on it. That guitar propped up in the corner that he swore he’d play for you one day but never got the chance to. Bookcases lined with everything from his precious manga to paint stained art history books. Art supplies scattered across the coffee table, a vase of fresh sunflowers positioned at the center.

You’re taken in by all of the new paintings. They’re darker than what he used to make and you try not to linger too much on the reason why. Hyunjin emerges from one of the rooms with a bundle of towels tucked under his arm. He wastes no time making his way back to you, tossing one over your head before you can react. 

“Hyunjin” you giggle as he dries you off like a puppy he’s just given a bath. Your hair goes everywhere, the tiny flower clips throughout it clanking as they fall free and hit the oak wood floors. 

He can’t contain his own laughter at how cute you are with your nose scrunched up like that, your laughter filling these walls for the first time in what seems to be an eternity. “What? I’m helping.” 

“You call this helping?” you pout, snatching a towel and giving him the same treatment he gave you. 

“Ouch, you’re gonna snap my neck!” he whines, twisting free of you. He runs to the other side of the room and you chase after him, draping the towel over his head and wildly tossing his hair around with it. 

“What? I’m helping” you mock. 

Hyunjin grabs you by the wrists, holding you in place, but your fingers still wiggle against his scalp and it tickles. “Stop it” he whispers, bringing you in close enough to watch the pink tint of his cheeks deepen. He says it like a dare masquerading as a threat and you’ve never been a girl opposed to taking Hyunjin’s bait. 

“Or what?”

He turns your wrists loose, hands dropping down to cradle your face in his palms. The surprise of the contact makes your body tense but that only lasts for so long. In the blink of an eye you’re melting into his touch, a low hum of electricity buzzing through you from head to toe. Hyunjin takes a deep breath, staring into your eyes like he’s falling head first into your starry orbs. “I’m gonna kiss you now, okay?”

It’s not a question as much as it is a notice. His lips crash into yours, stealing the air from your lungs to fuel his. This isn’t this kiss you remember. It’s sweeter—deeper. Dripping with enough longing that you can taste it. Your hands traverse each other’s bodies like weary travelers in desperate search of home. A home that’s your fingertips pressed against his chest, tearing at the soaked material of his shirt. A home that’s his hands hungrily devouring your figure through your dress. You’re two planets colliding, every piece of one scattered throughout the other. Neither of you have ever wanted anything this badly. Nothing in this whole wide world. 

“Hyunjin, wait” you somehow manage with his tongue still swirling around yours. You pry your lips free, tempted by how dangerously close to his they remain. “Are we really doing this? Are we…”

“We’re doing this but only if you want it. Do you?” he says softly, tracing the zipper of your dress. 

Your body arches into him, a trail of fire left in the wake of his fingertips. “I do but first there’s something I need to do.” 

“Something like what?” he asks and you catch seeds of panic blooming on that handsome face. 

You pet his chest to soothe his worries, “Something I should’ve done a long time ago. I saw your car when we came in. Can I borrow it? Pretty please?”

Hyunjin studies your expression, doing his best to decipher exactly what’s going through your pretty little head. But he can’t say no to you, that’s never been a strength of his. Digging through his pockets, he finds his keys and holds them out to you, only to snatch them back at the last second. “Come back to me…for good this time.” With that he hands the keys over, stealing one more kiss before you head for the door. 

Stopping in the doorway, you turn back to steal another glance at him. “For the record there was never any competition. It was always you.”

Hyunjin quirks his head at you, grinning as he nibbles at his bottom lip. “And it was always you. Always will be.”

[mnemosyne-nyx]

✨ Bruce Wayne Headcanons that haunt me but I refuse to elaborate on even if they're utterly wrong ✨

1. Bruce can cook, but only when he's 100% focused. If there is anything going on around him like a feral child or he's going over some case in his head then something's catching fire.

2. He definitely was a theatre kid for the shortest span when a teenager. Have you met this man? Are you telling me he's never engaged in a single drama piece in his life? He was raised by literal-Shakespeare-actor Alfred pennyworth? My man Bruce can ACT. All his personas rely on it. So does his undercover work. I like to think he was in a amateur Shakespeare production one time just to surprise and make Alfred happy.

3. Tying in with the acting - Bruce is a master of disguise. With all the languages he speaks, identity shenanigans, cases that need inside info. Bruce can just morph into another person. But his abilities in disguise also means he can mimic people's mannerisms and accents easily. The idea of Bruce confusing the shit out of Clark by just perfectly emulating his country accent and then pretending nothing happened tickles me very much.

4. This idiot tilts his head ever so slightly like a confused dog when being bamboozled. Only People who know him closely recognise this but it's such a minute movement it's easy to miss. Any confusing story, perplexing stupidity or a little sprinkle of disbelief - boom head tilt. God help you if you get the head tilt and batglare combined. You've said the most ungodly, sinful, idiotic, offensive, seizure-inducing idea known to man.

5. He and Diana 100% gossip in other languages when on the watchtower . Both are polylinguals. It's also a learning space. Diana 100% teaches him Ancient Greek, Latin and forgotten languages while Bruce 100% teaches her alien dialects he's mastered.

6. My guy can sing. Ever since that silly lil' justice league episode I can't get this silly lil' headcanon out my head and it makes my lil' toesies curl. Gotham, though a hell scape, is a melting pot of culture and music. Opera, jazz, blues but also a strong underground Punk and techno scene. You'd be hard pressed to avoid music in Gotham. My guy just learned to sing through osmosis. Only a small handful of people know he can sing, though none have admitted that to Bruce.

7. Since this man is a sponge of knowledge, he just drops some of the most jaw-dropping, disturbing and unprompted facts then refuses to elaborate. Oliver Queen is just enjoying his ham sandwich only for "You know studies about cannibals say that human meat tastes very similar to pork." and Oliver is just !?!?!?!!?. The batfam are watching The Matrix and Bruce suddenly "The codes in this film are actually just Sushi recipes." and everyone does a perfect slow swivel to face this engima of a man.

Thank you for attending my tedtalk :)

[temnurus]

Draco Falls First Fic Recs

I made this rec list when someone in a server asked for fics in which Draco falls in love with Harry first. I love pining, & this scenario is the perfect setup for it. As a result, I had rather a lot to choose from, but here are ten that made the cut this time.

The Unbearable Burden of Caring & it's sequel Sins and Scars and Shattered Things by Tessa Crowley (E, 22,189)

Thoughts: These fics both ruined me. They were so damn good that I could have wept from the sheer beauty of the prose alone. I swear I must've spent half of them clutching a tissue in anticipation of breaking into ugly sobs every five minutes. They were romantic & beautifully poignant; even the smut was so emotionally charged that I was left spellbound. I highly, highly recommend them both.

you've got the antidote for me by Kandakicksass (E, 20,730)

Thoughts: My heart was breaking for Draco before I even got through the summary. This soulmate fic is recced a lot & with good reason. It's still one of my favorites, & I reread it quite often.

Dragon Heartstrings by JET_Playin (E, 23,825)

Thoughts: Admittedly I'm a sucker for soulmate fics, so here's another for you. I liked how the author covered Draco's experience with seeing the red strings that indicated soulmate bonds throughout the years, briefly touching on his early childhood & skipping through his years at Hogwarts before settling into the meat of the story during his & Harry's eighth year at school. This is another one that I've reread several times because I just enjoy it so much each time.

Beating Out of Time by Moss_Man_Writes (E, 73,574)

Thoughts: I was sucked in from the very beginning, & I loved Draco's POV the most. The pining on Draco's part was perfect, & watching Harry fall in love with him was just enchanting.

The Butterfly Kiss by triggerlil (T, 1,998)

Thoughts: This is the shortest of all my recs, but it's by no means less engaging. The ethereal atmosphere of the whole thing left me breathless. Draco as a butterfly was something I'd never seen before, & even though I knew fairies were sometimes viewed as butterflies by unsuspecting mortals, I never would've thought of it as a premise. It was such a gorgeous soulmate AU (couldn't help myself). Draco's pining for Harry throughout was heart-achingly beautiful, too.

The Shape of the World by bixgirl1 (E, 48,276)

Thoughts: Memory loss fics often guarantee a healthy dose of angst, & this is no exception. Harry being the one afflicted did provide the perfect setup for Draco to fall for him first, though. He was probably already a bit in love with him before he ran back into him, to be honest, haha. This is by my favorite Drarry author, & rarely is there ever a time one of her fics doesn't make it onto a rec list of mine.

The Light More Beautiful by firethesound (E, 81,255)

Thoughts: Draco was so clever & creative in this, & the way he felt about Harry took my breath away. He appreciated the exact things about him that make me love Harry so much as a character, & it was probably my favorite thing about this fic. The pining was achingly lovely, the banter & teasing were fun, & the smut was scorching hot. firethesound is one of the most popular Drarry authors to date, & this is probably my favorite fic of hers.

The Lily Spell by pickledghost (E, 86,512)

Thoughts: Okay, fair warning, this is an Omegaverse fic & the author is up front about the fact that Draco's characterization isn't standard to canon or even most of fanon. He was so sweet that I just couldn't get enough of him. It's also an AU in which there was no second war with Voldemort, & I think it had a very believable interpretation of how Harry might've turned out under those circumstances. He was still very much himself at his core, just more confident & self-assured, in my opinion. The slow burn was so well done that I didn't even notice the passage of time while I was glued to the story. It hooked me in & kept me invested from start to finish.

Pop Up Pals by bambimoss (E, 62,447)

Thoughts: I cannot believe I almost forgot to add this fic. I read it twice in a row. That's how much I enjoyed the story. Draco being so lonely broke my fucking heart. Seriously, I think someone would have to be a sociopath if they couldn't empathize with Draco's experiences here. Surprisingly, I laughed a lot at this, & I also cried like a baby at one point. The characterizations were amazing, & the fic was jam-packed with emotion. It was absolutely stunning, & nothing has managed to knock it off of my top ten favorite Drarry fics list despite some very close contenders since the first time I read it.

[vivalas-vega]

new perspectives // part ten // jake 'hangman' seresin x reader

howdy !! I think this is the shortest chapter in this series yet, but kind of a heavy one nonetheless. I'm getting back into the swing of writing and am hoping to bring this series to it's close within the next 3-5 parts! as always, please let me know what you think!

new perspectives // part ten // jake 'hangman' seresin x reader

prologue - one - two - three - four - five - six - seven - eight - nine

add yourself to my taglist

word count: 2.5k

warnings: we are diving into jupiter's deployment so mentions of warzones and guns but nothing too graphic or in depth

The Hard Deck was thrumming just as it always was on a Friday night but lately Jake had lost the desire for after-work hangouts at the bar… darts and pool didn’t feel the same anymore, and he was having a hard time enjoying anything because he knew wherever you were you weren’t having fun. He tried to tell himself that maybe in the quiet moments, when the sky wasn’t falling and people weren’t relying on you to save their life, you and your team were able to unwind. Maybe kick around a soccer ball or play card games to pass the time and provide some sense of normalcy but he knew even if that was the case it didn’t change anything. You were in a warzone, and he was here at the bar. 

But, that didn’t stop him from trying. Your deployment was hard on everyone, not just him, and he knew that if he pulled away it would only make your friends feel it more deeply, he was the only tether to you and he also knew he needed to be here. If he wasn’t he’d be at home staring off into space and making himself sick with worry. It was better for him to be preoccupied, which was why he had taken on more responsibility at Top Gun, and why he was currently engaged in a game of darts with Coyote, trying to distract himself from the fact that he hadn’t heard from you in a month.

You two had discussed this going into it, and he knew communication would be infrequent. You had real life or death problems on your hands day in and day out, in a foreign country in the middle of an active warzone. Just because you didn’t call, or didn’t answer any of his, didn’t mean that something had happened to you, or that you didn’t want to. It just meant you were doing your job, and trying to stay safe in the process… but knowing that didn’t make it any easier of a pill to swallow. 

He also knew there was an order, and it wasn’t his turn. You two were no strangers to infrequent communication and you were adamant that your marriage could handle it. His turn had been first, and then your parents, and the next time you had the opportunity to call home it would be Rooster’s. He wasn’t angry about that, not at all… Rooster had quickly become your closest friend and confidant outside of him and he knew that you missed him just as much as everyone else, that in your darkest moments he would be one of the people you needed to see. He was grateful for it, to know that you had multiple people in your life you loved so deeply, trusted so implicitly… but that didn’t make it fun to know that the next time someone heard from you it would be the goofy guy across the bar laughing loudly with his arm slung around his new girlfriend’s waist and not him, that the next time he got an update on you it would come from him. 

He was endlessly proud of you, for how strong you had been and how devoted you were to your life’s calling. Putting yourself into such imminent danger to help others was just about the most you think he could think of, and he knew you could handle yourself. When you left you were off to a very condensed boot camp where you learned basic survival skills outside of medicine, you received a crash course in all the things you would need to know, and received training if god forbid you ever found yourself in the position of needing to defend yourself. He knew you were well equipped to take care of yourself, but he also knew that you likely had seen things and done things that would leave a lasting mark… but that was all he knew.

That was the hardest part for him… not knowing what you were going through. Even in your spottiest bouts of communication over the course of school and deployments he always knew what was going on with you, and his worst case scenarios he’d concoct when he worried were you stressing yourself into exhaustion. Now, his worst case scenarios were something he couldn’t even dare to verbalize, something if he thought about even a second too long would send him careening towards a ledge. 

“I’m sure she’s fine,” he heard from beside him suddenly, jumping slightly as he turned to see Coyote and he gave him a soft smile. 

“I know,” he replied and Coyote just nodded.

“She’s tough. Like, scary tough, my shoulder still makes a weird creaking sound from when she tackled me during dogfight football,” he said and this made Jake laugh, something that was pretty infrequent now.

“I still can’t believe she took you down like that,” he replied.

“Yeah, that one fights dirty, man… so I’m sure she’s holding her own just fine.” This provided Jake just enough reassurance in the moment that he was able to shift his focus somewhere else entirely, so much so that he didn’t notice the way Rooster pulled out his phone and quickly ran out of the bar.

“J?” he asked, the video on his phone taking its sweet time connecting and he heard his second-favorite laugh on the other end.

“Hey Roo, sorry, the video is super spotty here,” you said just as it fully connected and he finally got to see you for the first time since your wedding night. His first thought was that you looked different, almost unrecognizable if it weren’t for those few characteristics that were so completely you. You were thinner, primarily in your face and he couldn’t ignore the way your eyes lacked their usual warmth, it sent an ache through his chest to see you look so… hollow. 

“How are you? Are you okay? What’s going on over there?” he fired off in rapid succession and this pulled another soft laugh from your lips. You hadn’t realized how much you needed to see that stupid porn stache until it was staring back at you through the screen of a tablet. 

“Don’t worry about me, I don’t have long so tell me everything… what have I missed?” you asked and briefly he wanted to press, try to get you to open up about what you were going through over there but he realized that probably wasn’t what you needed right now. You needed a distraction, reminders of home, and you didn’t have much time to get it.

“Well, Eliza and I made things official a few days ago,” he said and you smiled, a real one that almost fully reached your eyes.

“Oh my god, that’s amazing! I’m so happy for you, Roo. Where did you take her for your first date?”

“Well, our unofficial first date was your wedding, but the real first date was mini golf… where she completely smoked me by the way,” he said and you chuckled. “She’s… incredible, JJ, I’ve never met a woman like her before.”

“Well I’ll be damned, Bradley Bradshaw is serious about someone? I leave for two months and suddenly the world turns upside down.”

“Shut up, I’ll have you know I’ve been serious about people before,” he protested before adding, “but not like this. I think this is it, J.”

“You keep that to yourself for a while longer, don’t spook her too soon,” you teased. “How is he?” you asked suddenly, getting serious and he knew what you meant without further clarification.

“He’s… good,” he replied and you furrowed your brows. “He’s just worried, is all. Just wants to know if you’re okay, we all do.” 

You nodded, “I don’t know if I am, Roo… and you can’t tell that to him, okay? I just… I don’t want him worrying anymore than he already is.”

“I won’t, but… talk to me? What’s going on over there?”

You sighed, “I don’t have enough hands, or supplies, or time… I’m picking and choosing who lives and who dies based on a twenty second evaluation and I just… never know if I’m making the right choices, never know if I’m actually making a damn difference out here.”

“Hey, you are. If I know you like I think I do, I know you are.”

You nodded but it didn’t really do anything to make you feel better. “I know this is our turn, but-”

“I texted him a few minutes ago, he should be out any second,” Rooster cut you off and you just smiled softly. 

“Thank you. I miss you way more than I thought I would, Roo,” you said and he let out a shocked laugh.

“What the hell does that mean?” he asked but he was interrupted by the door to the patio opening.

“Come outside in two minutes, alone? What kind of cryptic bullshit is that, Chicken?” you heard distantly and couldn’t help but laugh, warmth filling your chest at hearing your husband's voice after so long. “Is that- give me that,” he said, snatching the phone from Rooster’s hand and confirming for himself it was really you.

“Hey you,” you said and you thought his face might split open from how wide he was grinning. “Might want to not be so hard on Rooster, seeing as he gave up some of his phone time for you.” 

“God, I miss you, are you okay?” 

You nodded, forcing yourself to smile and Jake saw right through it, saw the way it didn’t fully reach your eyes. “I’m okay.”

“I’ll give you guys space,” Rooster said from beside Jake, “I love you, JJ, stay safe, okay?”

“Love you too, Roo,” you replied and suddenly there was a commotion from outside your tent that made him stop in his tracks as Jake’s eyes widened in concern.

“Jupiter, what’s going on?” he asked, trying to pinpoint the sounds he was hearing. The visual was blocked by you pressing the tablet against your chest as you poked your head outside the tent and the sound became clear as day on their end. Gunfire. 

“I have to go.”

“Jupiter, talk to me,” Jake tried but you’d barely heard it, barely registered.

“I can’t- I’m sorry, I love you,” was all you said before the call disconnected and Jake stood there frozen, staring at a black screen as he tried to process what had just happened. 

“Was that…?” Rooster started, not entirely sure of what to say. He knew whatever he was feeling was magnified in Jake tenfold, but that didn’t make it any easier to push through to try and be there for him. 

“I think so,” Jake said after clearing his throat. Logically he knew you’d face situations like this, it was the biggest thing he was struggling to come to terms with, but actually hearing it was a completely different beast. Right now he was standing here with your best friend on the patio overlooking the ocean at sunset… it was peaceful, yet somewhere halfway across the world you were under fire, undoubtedly under stress as you were probably assessing wounded soldiers and civilians, trying to do your job the best you could. 

Rooster noticed the slight tremble in Jake’s hands, noticed the way he was currently retreating into himself and trying to not spin out and he gently pulled the phone away and put a hand on his shoulder. “Hey man, come on, let’s go sit for a minute,” he said, and Jake followed him almost mindlessly out onto the beach where they both sat down. “I know this might not sound helpful, but she’s been out there two months already, I’m sure this isn’t the first time… she knows how to handle herself.”

Jake let out a humorless laugh, “you’re right, it’s not.” He knew what Rooster’s intentions were behind the sentiment, you’d gone through this before and made it out the other side, and you’d do it again now, but all it served as was a reminder that this was your life right now. He was focused on the fact that you didn’t sound worried at all, you’d said you had to go and that you loved him as simply as you used to when you’d call him in between patients. He was sitting here, mind spinning with the possibilities of what could be happening and you’d sounded as calm as ever. That should have proved reassuring, in some small way, you weren’t fazed… you weren’t scared, but it wasn’t. If anything, it made his chest ache more. 

“She’s gonna be okay, man. It’s Jupiter, she can handle anything,” Rooster said, even though he might not have fully meant it. He saw you, heard the unsure tone as you spoke to him and saw those hollow eyes, you were different. You weren’t the Jupiter you left as, weren’t the Jupiter they knew like the back of their hands… and Rooster knew it would happen, had told you as much sitting right here in this same spot just a few months ago. 

“I don’t know… I should have told her no, told her not to do it, anything to get her to stay put,” Jake sighed and Rooster chuckled.

“We are talking about Jupiter right?” he asked and Jake couldn’t help but laugh too. “She knew what she was signing up for. We talked about it, you know... what she'd see, what she'd do, briefly, but she knew. She never bites off more than she can chew.”

“Yeah, I think this time is different,” Jake said and Rooster nodded.

“Maybe… but she’s got you, and she’s got the rest of us. We’ve all got her, no matter how she is when she comes home.”

“If she comes home,” Jake nearly whispered and this took Rooster aback. It felt like a weight off his back to finally say his biggest fear out loud, but only seconds later that weight came crashing down as he fully realized it was a genuine possibility. It wasn’t some hypothetical worst case scenario he’d concocted, hearing that gunfire proved that, it was simply how things were. If you came home. 

“You can’t think like that right now. Her tour is over in just a few weeks, she’ll pull through.” 

Jake sighed again, “I just need to know that she’s safe.”

“She’ll call when she can. That much I know for certain, I’m sure she didn’t want to leave things like that. She’ll call, or she’ll email just as soon as she’s able.” 

“I think I get it now,” Jake said and Rooster gave him a confused look, “why she likes you so much,” he practically mumbled and Rooster laughed. 

“Come on, man. There’s nothing either of us can do except wait, and she wouldn’t want you spinning out over this. Let’s go back inside,” he said as he stood and dusted the sand from his pants, and Jake followed reluctantly. He was right after all, he couldn’t do anything right now except go back inside, nurse his beer and hope you were okay.

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[dergnblaze]

Finished Dragon Age Vielguard.

Here are my thoughts... spoilers ahead. I romanced emmerich. he became a lich.

You could REALLY TELL they fired all their writers.

I loved how beautiful everything was, the combat was delicious. But so much of the game felt filler or forgotten.

There were many many opportunities to make compelling story moments that were just lost to happening off screen. Like they were afraid if they tried to animate them they would get made fun of if it didnt look right or something. But just lost all their power bc we didnt SEE them happen.

Lots of moments with bards in the environment that I think SHOULD HAVE HAD music! Maybe not voiced music! But a musical change would have been nice. Hell I would have been happy with the music from the inquisition even.

Its also the shortest Dragon Age game I've ever played. And I hate that. I hate it.

I agree having a tightly wrapped up story is better to ambiguity and lots of moving parts makes things confusing, but everything felt rushed and nothing had room to breath.

I loved romancing Emmerich, and would have loved to see all of the companions have more reactivity with your choices and the enviroment. After every big choice in inquisition you got a scene with the companions it effected the most.

The ending of the game was done very well. I thought the lead up to the big boss fight was well paced, engaging, thrilling and satisfying. But I couldnt help but keep thinking 'Wow I wish the rest of the game got this level of care and attention.'

All the dragons were a mess. We need a big boss fight? Ok here is a dragon. Thats a cop out. I dont like it.

I like all of the companions a LOT more than some of the other games. In Inquistion I only really cared about like, three of them. And how hard would it have been REALLY to bring some of what you did in Inquision into this game? The Divine choice could have been an easy way to satisfy us with a line or two of dialogue, but just nothing?

I liked that there were bodies in the tentacles, that was cool. Belarra being all gross and blighted was cool. It was dark when I needed it to be, so Im happy with that. Elgarnan looked sick as fuck at the end of the game, and so did Solas for that matter. I really like that Emmerich was in lich mode the entire end game. That was hot. I'm sad Lucanis died in my run. I feel like other games would have had a funeral for our lost companions or something, but Harding and Lucanis didnt really get anything.

And Mythal just being some white lady elf was lame. She was an elven god! You CLEARLY have some amazing animators and designers working on the game, its beautiful. It would not have been hard to give us a large, beautiful, ethereal elven goddess instead of just this random white lady ghost. Just feels thoughtless.

SO much of this game felt thoughtless. Like, just the care and attention wasnt given to it that the other games had.

And I shouldnt compare it to Baldurs Gate 3 bc that game is like, magnificent.

But how can I NOT??

They are the same kind of game!!

idk, I feel like the studio maybe gave up on it. I love this IP but after this I doubt it has the legs to keep going. No hook for the next game in the epilogue. No real epilogue for Rook and their partner. Just them standing with their hands on their hips while like four people cheer for them. Lame.

[radfemsiren]

Hey, I'm an ex Muslim (closeted ). i have a Muslim roommate we're in college, and she's a religious fanatic/apologist. and constantly defends mohamed even though he's a pedophile. and fully supports how Muslim countries treat women, i.e., Afghanistan. How do I change her mind without blowing my cover? This is my first taste of independence away from my family, and I don't want to go back (sorry for the bad grammar)

Hello, thanks for this ask ❤️ Honestly, if you fear your independence might be threatened by challenging this person, don’t engage with them. There’s a lot of Muslims I’ve deprogrammed successfully, and every single one of them took years to ever admit to me that they were wrong. The shortest time was a full year, pride is a funny thing lol. So even if you change this person’s mindset, there’s a high chance they will remain hostile to you… and if you are risking your safety and independence, then it’s not worth it.

If you are completely safe, and want to engage, then I always recommend the method of playing dumb and asking questions… when they have to come up with the answers themselves, it always helps them reach the conclusions you need them to with less resistance.

Don’t say, “Muhammad was a pedophile, why do you support that?!”

Ask:

“What do you think of the age of Aisha?”

“Do you think that’s ok?”

“If you had a daughter, would you let a 60 year old man marry her when she’s that age?”

“What do you think of gay people? Do they deserve to go to hell?”

“Why is Christianity not the truth, and Islam is? What makes us different, when we both say we are the truth?”

“Why are there no female prophets?”

“Why must women pray behind the man?”

“Why are we dirty when we are on our period? Why can’t we pray or fast?”

“Why do we have to wear hijab and men don’t?”

Frame every problem and logical inconsistency with Islam as a question.

This gives you 2 benefits:

1. It doesn’t tire you out. They do the majority of the talking and fighting, with themselves now instead of you.

2. They are not on guard. They don’t perceive you as an outsider on the attack. Brainwashed people in high control religions automatically shut down critical thought when they feel threatened. Play like you genuinely want to understand, and they won’t feel like you are on a different team.

You can have strong Hadiths and clear ayahs on hand, but most religious people are religious because they don’t like to investigate or look for evidence.

Showing them clear evidence in a straightforward way and treating them like adults is surprisingly way less effective than gentle parenting them, and treating them like babies lol

[booreadsbooks]

The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air #2); Holly Black, Review

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (one more than last time oooo)

"There is only now. There is only tomorrow and tonight and now and soon and never."

Thank you to my friend who convinced me to keep reading the series, and lent me the book so that I actually did. A slay for real.

The shortest possible review I could say is this: The Wicked King had a lot more of the things I liked from the first book (excellent world building, tense political intrigue and scheming spy antics, some pretty good humor) and a lot less of the things I didn't like (Taryn, general high-school bullying antics). Overall the stakes felt a lot higher, and I really loved the constant push-and-pull power struggles that Jude was facing on every side. Some of the characters I still hate (and what are you gonna do, they're teens) but I'm glad I got to see more of the spies. Cardan, shockingly, got to be much more tolerable in this book (and he was the source of a lot of the humor).

4 stars and not 5 cos... IDK. This needed something to push it to 5. Don't ask me what though, I don't know. Maybe a Taryn death.

Go below the cut for specific thoughts, as always:

There are spoilers here, by the way, massive ones so... you've been warned.

Jude corruption arc continues with this absolute banger of a scene: Taryn, the annoying sister who won't go away (she haunts me every moment) brings Jude her stuffed animals from home, and this happens:

"Once she's gone, I take my stuffed animals and seat them next to me on the rug. Once, they were a reminder that there was a time before Faerieland, when things were normal. Once, they were a comfort to me. I take a long last look, and then, one by one, I feed them to the fire. I'm no longer a child, and I don't need comfort."

God she's so young. I just love that this whole scene illustrates exactly how young she is. Like, she's playing big scary adult, she feels like she is but... a scary adult would not feel the need to "prove" her maturity like that. The Wicked King is basically Jude constantly trying to prove that she's as tough as everyone around her, falling apart, and not actually recovering and resting until she's absolutely forced to do so. And I love that arc for her, and can't wait to see her do more murder once she realizes the MASSIVE HINT in Cardan's banishment (until the crown allows you to return... girl. Be so fucking for real. You literally called yourself the queen... I was so mad like how can she be so smart and so stupid at the same time).

As for Cardan, I'll be honest, taking a break between book 1 and 2 was probably for the best, because it made Cardan much more likeable when I could only distantly remember how evil he is. He's still dumb, and a cruel prince king, but he's also much funnier when I'm not thinking about high school bullies. Favorite Cardan moment:

"So what?" I ask. "Our choice is to endure her games, no matter how deadly, or engage in a war we cannot win?" "Cardan shakes his head and drinks another cup of tea. "We show her that I am no feckless High King." "And how do we do that?" I ask. "With great difficulty," he says, "Since I fear she is right."

Also, Cardan has a hate/murder kink. Not copying down all the reasons I know, this, but if you read the book it is very obvious.

Anyway, one other thing I wanted to mention was that I really enjoyed the part where Jude was captured by the undersea. Not that I liked to see her suffer like that, but also kinda... I did. BECAUSE it was cool to go back to her roots as "spy" Jude, instead of Seneschel Jude. And her tricking them and being sneaky was fun. Also, because I feel that we were always going to lead to a weakened state Jude, she was burning herself out way too fast. This was the opportunity we needed to actually achieve Recovery Jude!! Who will come back to Fairieland as soon as she stops being dense better and more badass than ever.

And Madoc... Madoc when I catch you! When I catch you Madoc...

EDIT: “Kiss and Tell” by I Don’t Know How But They Found Me is unapologetically Jude and Cardan coded, sorry I don’t make the rules

[ithinkdogshouldvote2]

Dndads Headcanons, season 2 kiddads and teens (appearance based)

the order of the kiddads from tallest to shortest is: terry jr, sparrow (by like half an inch), lark, grant, nick (but none of them are really all that short)

Lark, sparrow, and nick all have their ears pierced but sparrows holes closed up and he didn't wanna relive the traumatic experience of re-piercing them, while larks have gotten infected so many times he just stopped trying.

Terry dresses like a substitute teacher literally every day of this fucking life.

Sparrow is almost always wearing a bathrobe or a comfy cardigan. He dresses like a mixture of a female therapist and a deranged housewife.

Lark dresses like he's in the walking dead

Nick has a frankly absurd amount of Christmas sweaters and it's VERY obvious which ones are from Glenn.

Grant has curly hair.

both lark and sparrow need glasses. sparrow wears his when he needs them, but Lark never wears them because they make him look like henry.

terry jr also wears glasses and started wearing rons after he died.

scary was born with blonde hair, but it's gotten darker as she got older. right now, it's a light brown/sandy blonde. when her mom and terry Jr. got engaged, he tried to bond with scary by pointing out that their hair was almost the same color. she dyed it black the next day.

on the topic of hair dye, taylor tried to dye his hair electric blue when he was in middle school and had to buzz it all off cause he destroyed it with bleach. he cried for 2 weeks.

both scary and taylor regularly paint their nails. normal TRIES to paint his nails but then gets annoyed that now they taste gross and ends up picking off all the nail polish before its even finished drying

btw normals nails are so fucked up. just absolutely destroyed. theyre so bad. he has never cut them hes only ever bitten them off.

on the other hand Lincolns nails are really well kept. he pushes back his cuticles and everything.

the only non-sportswear type clothing that lincoln owns are garfield t-shirts. he has alot of them

Scary is taller than Taylor, but only when she's wearing her combat boots, which add like 2 inches to her height.

Lincoln is only taller than Terry jr by an inch (and 6 feet lmaooo)

Everyone's taller than normal.

Lark and sparrow both have a dimple on one of their cheeks but it's the opposite side of the others.

Normal has dimples on both cheeks!

Taylor only has horns when he's using magic or really angry and they're very small. When he saw them for the first time he got pissed cause they're nothing like his trollsonas.

Taylor totally has an ahegao hoodie.

Taylor has a t-shirt that's just a written apology to women for his ahegao hoodie

Normal has a lot of nasa hoodies that he keeps stealing from hero to piss her off

Scary stole one of Terry jr cardigans, dyed it back, and ripped it up to make it goth cause she THOUGHT it would piss him off. But it backfired, and terry started wearing it around the house to be supportive.

Scary also secretly stole one of Terry Jr's old band t-shirts for herself cause she thought it was cool. Terry knows she has it but will not say a goddamn word cause he thinks it's so sweet.

Grant has a picture of baby Lincolns face on a t-shirt next to the titanic that says "I survived the titanic and all I got was this stupid baby" given to him by nick that he has never worn because it's mean but it's collecting dust in a closet somewhere in the house. Lincoln found it once but didn't understand it cause he never saw the titanic, so he just didn't say anything.

[theravenchild]

7, 11 and 15 for the ask game, please 💙

Diana! Thank you for sending these asks! ☺️ I'm so sorry it took so long to finish the reply, but I just kept adding to it and researching! Some of it was just loosely established lore and I had to delve deeper.

7. Describe your MC’s family.

Hellendil comes from a family of mixed background. His father is a muggle blacksmith/metal worker with Lenape ancestry and his mother a Welsh witch who found her calling as a metal charmer and jewelry maker. She was a world traveler after Hogwarts, frequenting worlds fairs and expos in search of materials and new techniques to use in her craft. She met her future husband at one such expo showcasing new technology and techniques as well as suppliers from around the world. With the industrial revolution underway, he needed to find new avenues for his own profession to stay relevant and these fairs were an excellent place to learn.

The two hit it off during one of the panels and continued writing to one another after returning home. He eventually sent a letter to her father asking for her hand with an engagement gift of raw garnets and amethysts he'd collected for use in her craft. When they married, he moved to Wales and worked under another smith until the proprietor eventually retired and sold him the business and property. The pair raised their four children in the house next to the smithy with help from her parents.

Hellendil's older sister is about 5'11" with dark brown hair. She is a more stern and straightlaced individual than her older brother, but also did not inherit any magical ability. As with all of the siblings, she was taught the arts of blacksmithing and jewelry making by their parents. She is a strong and dedicated individual and chose to follow the blacksmith path to a career. She apprenticed to another smith to learn more before she would eventually take over her father's business. With the rapid changes in metal working and technology at the time, she also frequently travels to attend technology fairs as her father did to learn new techniques and be prepared to adjust her work and the business to those changes.

Hellendil is the youngest of four children in the family. His eldest sibling, his brother, is 6'4" and wears his black hair long as well. He is a squib and a bit of a trouble maker in his youth in quest to be the center of attention. He wished to pursue a career as a dragonologist when he was growing up. Out of concern for his safety, the family talked him into an archaeology career instead, a career he is quite happy with after all. He currently assists with archeological digs in Egypt and frequently writes to his little brother about the finds and traces of magical history they are uncovering. He's constantly telling Hellendil to pursue a career as a curse breaker and come work with him.

His youngest sister is three years older and also possessed magical talent. She is the shortest sibling at around 5'7". She has black hair and likes to wear it in cute styles. She attended Hogwarts as well and was sorted into Hufflepuff. She is fun and vibrant, and a hopeless romantic, frequently reading romance novels (and passing them down to her little brother). She is currently working with her mother at the jewelry shop since she is undecided as to what she truly wants to do with her life.

11. What are your MC’s fears?

Ever since the confrontation with Rookwood, Hellendil's greatest fear is the darkness he is capable of when he becomes infuriated. So much anger and hate fueled powerful magic that helped him easily overpower his enemies, but once it was over he was a wreck over what he had done. Yes, he'd avenged Anne and Sebastian and numerous others that Rookwood had cursed or killed, but at what cost? The memory haunts him, especially at times when he's alone and unoccupied.

He also certainly fears loss, especially of those he cares about. He's seen so much loss during fifth year, it's one of those things that will show up in nightmares, and jostle him awake. It keeps him up at night, worrying.

15. What is your MC’s ideal first date?

I did answer this one earlier so I will link it here rather than retyping. ☺️

[hanafubukki]

Hey, Hana, here's Q; You get to marry Lilia but in exchange you can only eat the food he makes for the rest of your life. Would you do it? (This includes snacks as well.)

….Violet do you want me dead? Lmao 🤣😆

I think it would be the shortest marriage ever…unless Malleus blessed me against Lilia’s food or some type of invincibility. 🤔

If I don’t get that blessing or it doesn’t work 🧐 I don’t mind being in the “engaged” status forever lolol hey I want to live happily with him okay? Not traumatize him with my death. 😆

Got to think like a fae and find loopholes lolol

[sunflowervoltwentyeight]

Happy 28th! Here's my September 2023 fic rec, organized by word count, from longest to shortest. Enjoy!

Save Me (From Myself) by imogenlee / @imogenleewriter (159k)

The problem with being friends with Liam Payne was that he had a lot of friends... and forced them to be around each other. When they finished high school, both Louis and Harry were equally relieved that they wouldn't have to tolerate each other constantly or whatever it was that they did.

For five years, it worked out perfectly. They'd only had to see each other a handful of times.

Unfortunately, Liam had to go and get engaged, ask them to both be groomsmen, and then go full groomzilla on their arses. With just twelve weeks to plan the 'perfect' destination wedding and throw every ridiculous pre-wedding celebration Liam and his fiancée stumble across, it was safe to say they were firmly back in each other's lives.

And no one could have predicted that was exactly what they needed.

We Are Only Just the Beginning by afirecannotdie (129k)

In the dim light of a dorm kitchen, Harry Styles meets a boy who flips his life upside down. Three years later, he's a senior in college, ready to take on the world with the love of his life by his side. And then Louis Tomlinson admits he doesn't know what he wants to do after college after all, and Harry's world flips again, this time not so pleasantly. He can't imagine his life without Louis, but he's starting to worry he might have to.

A college AU featuring lots of domestic sappiness, waffles, tattoos, late nights and early mornings, and above all, Louis and Harry against the world.

Been Together Since Way Back When by alivingfire / @alivingfire (95k)

Louis Tomlinson is a law student with a simple but effective four step plan: 1. Finish law school. 2. Get hired somewhere awesome. 3. Marry his best friend and boyfriend of two years, Harry. 4. Live happily ever after.

Harry Styles doesn't know what he wants to do with his life, where he wants to go, who he wants to be, or if he even wants the college degree he's almost completed. All he does know is who he’ll be with forever, as long as Louis wants to keep him around.

Or: the painfully realistic college au where everyone's poor, lovesick, tired of school, terrified of the future, and still having the greatest times of their lives.

Such Good Luck by casuallyhl / @casuallyhl (66k)

Louis smiles at Harry’s words, leaning into his touch. “Tell me again.”

Smiling, Harry takes Louis into his arms. Pressing gentle kisses to his face, Harry murmurs, “In six months’ time, I will have my twenty-fifth birthday. On that day, my portion of the inheritance will become legally mine. And I plan that very day to announce to my family that I have found love.” Harry chuckles as he runs his lips lightly along Louis’ cheekbone. “That, in fact, I found love when I was twenty-one years old, and that I have loved and been loved every day since.”

Or, an Edwardian AU where Harry is a young aristocratic lord and Louis is a working class dairy farmer. Secrets are a necessary part of their relationship, but Louis has one that could topple their whole world.

I'll Crash Until You Notice Me by stylinsoncity / @stylinsoncity

Louis sets off to Barbados to oversee the massive resort his family owns known as Sandy Hill. For years, he's been looking for a change in the monotony of his life, seeking adventure and perhaps love too. What he doesn't expect is the bright eyed boy who spills a milkshake on his shoes.

Cue the summer loving.

You Were In My Dream by staybeautiful / @harruandlou (59k)

“I had a sex dream about Harry.” Louis slapped his free hand over his mouth after the words slipped out.

Zayn paused, his hand freezing as he was about to take a bite, his head snapping up to look at Louis. Louis could relate, it’s how he’d felt that morning after he’d woken up. He’d laid in bed for fifteen minutes trying to figure out what had happened, why it had turned him on so much, and then patiently waiting for his erection to go down.

“Like… my Niall’s Harry? Harry Styles?” Zayn clarified, his face bewildered as if trying to comprehend what had just happened. “Do you even like Harry?”

“His last name is Styles?”

or Louis woke up after having a sexy dream about his best friend’s boyfriend’s best friend resolved to never think about it again. He hardly knew Harry, so what difference would it make? But when they are thrown together only a few days later, Louis had to admit, his subconscious might have been onto something.

Lost In the Silver Sea by you_explode / @nobodymoves (42k)

Harry’s felt powerless for so long now. They took away his voice last year and it feels like every day they somehow take away more of it. It feels impossible to ever get some power back, to ever speak. Every day he feels more like a puppet, like a marionette, a ventriloquist’s dummy. Like the price he has to pay to live his dream is to sacrifice his voice, his own self, and become a shell of whoever they want him to be.

But he has Louis. Thank god he has Louis.

*

Non-AU. From MSG 2012 to MSG 2018; or, Harry and Louis keep having their voices silenced, and they keep finding ways to speak.

Player by jacaranda_bloom / @jacaranda-bloom (28k)

Louis’ job should be simple. Harry Styles, one of the top ranking tennis players in the world, is every publicist's perfect client. He’s charismatic, enigmatic, and fit as fuck. The darling of the media, a national treasure, and a sponsor's wet dream. He’s also a goofball with the kindest heart, sweet, and polite, and singularly focused on achieving his goals.

There are just two minor problems. Firstly, Louis' debilitating crush on said client. And secondly, Harry has just accidentally Instagrammed a picture of his dick to his 18 million followers. So no, Louis’ job is anything but simple.

OR the one where Louis is Harry’s highly strung publicist and has a thing for his client, Harry is an international sports star and has a thing for his publicist, Liam and Zayn have a thing for each other, and Niall wishes everyone would just get their shit together.

[sephirothsplaything]

DNA| Sec.80 high power-chapter 6.1

A/N: Me when this is the shortest chapter i've ever written. Yes this is filler but I promise some of the stuff in here will be important later on.

also, young rhaella flashback with her mommy TT

Kings Landing, Aemond’s 12th name day, Pre the death of Lady Laena Velyeron.

“ I wish to ride with father!” A young Baela exclaimed. The family was preparing to set off towards King’s landing for Aemond Targayen’s twelfth name day.

Laena smiled fondly at her daughter. She glanced at her youngest, Rhaella. With her large, violet eyes and her silver curls piled into an updo on her head, the girl was only one and ten years of age.

“Would you like to ride on Caraxes, Rhaella?” Laena asked. Rhaella shook her head furiously. Her father’s red dragon was much too fast for her liking. Instead, she turned towards her mother’s own dragon, Vhagar.

Baela pulled Rhaena by Caraxes, sticking her tongue out to Rhaella childishly.

“Rhaena and I shall have all the fun!” Baela said. Rhaella clutched the wrapped gift in her hand, intended for her cousin Aemond.

“Baela, be nice.” Laena reminded. Daemon looked on at his children in amusement. He couldn’t understand where Rhaella’s quiet nature came from.

Daemon helped his two twins onto Caraxes, before hiking himself to mount. Rhaella watched the dragon take off into the sky in envy.

One day, she’d hope. One day she too will be in the skies.

“Come, my love, let us be off,” Laena said. Rhaella’s tiny brown hand brushed against Vhagar’s hardened scales. The mighty she-dragon allowed it, even softly chuffing at the action.

Laena picked up her daughter, mounting Vhagar. The dragon was slow to leave the ground as Laena tightened her grip on the reigns.

“Vhagar, sōvēs.” She said. Rhaella held onto her mother’s waist as the weight shifted and the dragon took to the sky.

“Are you excited to see your cousins, Rhaella?” Laena asked. Rhaella hummed thoughtfully. Her older cousin, Helaena, was three and ten years old and was always nice to her. Rhaella had been eager to speak with her again. She hated Aegon, his sleazy gazes made her want to hide.

“I took one of Father’s books, for Aemond,” Rhaella said. Laena couldn’t fight the smile. Daemon would be deeply annoyed at the discovery.

“I’m sure Aemond will appreciate it, dear,” Laena said.

After a while, the pair flew over Kings Landing. Laena landed Vhagar a ways away from the city. Laena jumped down from her dragon, helping Rhaella off as well.

Rhaella adjusted the blush-colored fabrics of her dress. The matching headband was off-centered due to the wind. Chuckling, Laena adjusted it on Rhaella’s head.

“There, and how pretty you look!” Laena gushed. She glanced at the book in her daughter’s hands with a playful smile.

“I’m sure Aemond will agree as well,” Laena said. Rhaella looked away from her mother bashfully. She was always saying things like that. Rhaella supposed her mother liked to jest.

Mother and daughter walk to the gates of the Red Keep. In the outer courts, the festivities had long since begun.

Rhaella could see her two sisters already in conversation with their cousins, Jace and Luke. 

“Laena, I see you’ve made it.” A voice rang. Princess Rhaenyra approached the two, smiling eagerly. Rhaella watched the two women embrace as she stood awkwardly to the side.

Pulling back from Laena, Rhaenyra smiled at the small girl by her side.

“ Aren’t you just a proper lady!” Rhaenyra said. Rhaella gave a shy smile to the princess.

Leaving the women to catch up, Rhaella walked over to the long table. Baela was engaged in a spirited conversation with Jace while Rhaena and Luke watched on.

“Where is Aemond?” Rhaella asked. She had noticed that the boy was nowhere to be seen, and on his name day no less.

“I don’t much care,” Baela said. Rhaella’s eyebrows furrowed in annoyance. She had thought her sister would have the courtesy of being a little softer on this day.

Rhaella abandoned the group, wandering far from the party. The bright sun was beaming down on her face, temporarily obscuring her vision.

Then, she saw him. Propped up in front of a Weirwood tree, there sat Aemond.

Rhaella sighed out, glad her walking efforts we not in vain. She took a seat in the grass opposite to him.

Aemond glanced up in surprise. Rhaella and her quiet footsteps had startled him.

“I suppose everyone is missing me if they sent you here,” Aemond said. Rhaella toyed with the book’s wrapped parchment.

“ In truth, no one much cares,” Rhaella said, rather bluntly. Despite her tone, her eyes met his, clear with mirth. 

“I thought as much,” Aemond said, sullen look deepening. His attention was pulled to the present in the girls’ hands.

“What’s that?” Aemond asked. Rhaella passed the book to him.

“It’s for you,” Rhaella said. Aemond eagerly ripped apart the covering, revealing the book.

‘ Dragons and Histories’ 

“ Father will be cross with me for taking it, but we have plenty of others,” Rhaella said.

“Thank you, Rhaella,” Aemond said gratefully. Rhaella shrugged. She had read through the same book many times herself. She knew her cousin shared the same hunger to learn.

Scooting closer to him, Rhaella flipped to a page she knew well. Sketches of Balerion, the Black Dread filled the page. Among all the dragons, Rhaella favored him above all else. 

“Father told me he was named after the Old Valyrian God of death,” Rhaella said. Aemond looked at her in awe. His cousin always seemed to know much and more than he ever could. 

“I want a dragon like that,” Aemond said. He longed for something undeniable in power. Something that the realm would have no choice but to acknowledge.

“I think I would too.” Rhaella agreed. Aemond gave her a side glance.

“ Balerion was ridden by Aegon the Conqueror, he would be best suited for a man.” 

Rhaella scoffed at the absurdity of the comment. “ Princess Aerea rode him, you should know that if the maesters have taught you anything at all.” She said.

Aemond fell silent at Rhaella’s scolding. Rhaella’s eyes soften. Perhaps she had been too harsh, it was his name day after all.

“One day, you and I will fly all over the realm together,” Rhaella said. 

“I want to see the ruins of Old Valyria,” Aemond said. Rhaella pulled a face. Old Valyria was a dangerous place but she declined to add the fact in for Aemond’s sake.

“I’d much rather see Dorne,” Rhaella said. It was the only place their ancestors couldn’t overtake. Her curiosities regarding the place always bubbled over.

“Dorne, why?” Aemond asked. Rhaella closed the book, pushing it to the side.

“It’s warm and the women are fair,” Rhaella said. Aemond glanced at her in confusion.

“Perhaps I’d marry a Dornish prince as well. Rhaella added. Aemond grimaced. Why she would venture to Dorne for a husband? It was beyond him.

“They’re all right, you are quite strange,” Aemond said. Rolling her eyes, Rhaella stood up in a huff, dusting off her dress.

Aemond stood as well, placing the book under his arm. 

“I don’t much like being called that,” Rhaella said. The two began walking to the festivities. Rhaella was fixed on not missing the cake.

Suddenly, Rhaella halted in place, a sly smile dancing across her face. Turning to Aemond, she places a peck on his cheek, causing the boy to freeze.

A furious blush makes its way to Aemond’s cheek, much to Rhaella’s enjoyment.

“What was that for?” Aemond asked, fumbling his words.

Rhaella stared at him in bemusement. She turned to continue walking, Aemond quick on her heels. 

“You should cheer up, cousin,” Rhaella said.

“I’m here for you, after all.”